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Happy Tuesday. One week until the primary election.
If you’re voting by mail, be sure to get your ballot in as soon as possible. The U.S. Postal Service recommends sending in at least seven days before Election Day. That’s… today!
Meanwhile, it’s another split screen week with the Senate in session in Springfield and the House members in their districts.
Our lead topic: A new FY26 revenue projection.
COGFA: FY26 revenue up 1.2%
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This update first posted to our insider page on Friday: A Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability update shows current fiscal year revenue is expected to be about 1.2% higher than what lawmakers budgeted. For the upcoming year, new projections are now more bullish than what Gov. JB Pritzker proposed, according to the COGFA report.
WHAT IT MEANS: Lawmakers may have a bit more leeway in crafting a budget, but it’s likely not enough movement to drastically alter the landscape. Plus, it’s still early in the fiscal year, and things can change, especially come tax season.
For the upcoming fiscal year, COGFA estimates revenue will be $199 million higher than Pritzker’s budget when excluding the governor’s proposed revenue changes for fiscal year 2027. Pritzker has asked lawmakers to approve proposals that would increase revenue by another $728 million.
CURRENT YEAR: In a year dominated by uncertainty over how much federal funding the state will receive, COGFA estimates Illinois will take in $686 million more than it expected when approving the budget last May — an increase of about 1.2%.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING: COGFA and Pritzker’s budget office are scheduled to present their offices’ budget proposals to a Senate committee on Wednesday. We’ll report back.
What’s on tap this week?
FOUR THINGS TO WATCH:
- The Illinois Supreme Court is “riding the circuit” at Western Illinois University on Wednesday as they hear oral arguments in two cases. Our Peter Hancock will be in the makeshift courtroom. And it can be streamed on the university’s YouTube channel.
- As we teased, COGFA and GOMB will appear before the Senate Appropriations Committee Wednesday morning to make their FY27 budget asks. They’ll be joined by the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts, the Illinois Civil Service Commission, Worker’s Compensation Commission, Joint Committee on Administrative Rules and Legislative Information System. We’ll update at our live blog.
- Meanwhile, the Illinois State Police and Office of the State Fire Marshal will present their proposed budgets to the the Senate Appropriations-Public Safety Committee Wednesday afternoon.
- On Thursday, the House Judiciary-Criminal Committee will hold a subject matter hearing in Chicago on HB 1611, better known as the Anjanette Young Act. The proposed legislation would ban most no-knock search warrants statewide.
INTERESTING BILLS SCHEDULED IN COMMITTEE:
- SB 3083 (Faraci) – Public pools may allow dogs to use swimming pool when facility is closed for human use and the pool is drained no later than 24 hours after use.
- SB 2972 (Morrison) – Requires owners of boats of greater than 50 horsepower to carry a minimum of $50,000 in liability coverage and proof of insurance.
- SB 8235 (Villivalam) – Sets forth intercity passenger rail routes, requires IDOT to incorporate aspiration frequencies into the Illinois State Rail Plan and the Long Range Statewide Transportation Plan.
- SB 3404 (Martwick) – Would require local governments to establish a version of the state’s pension buyout program. Implementation would be optional, however.
Reminder: It’s committee deadline week for the Senate. They’re scheduled to be in until Friday.
TL;DR: Expect a lot of turn-of-the-screw actions in Springfield this week as most turn their attention to the primary election next week.
THE FULL DOCKET: Senate calendar | Illinois Supreme Court docket
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